JanuaryJanuary started the year mild, dry and sunny. The temperatures averaged 30.0 degrees, 1.0 degree per day above normal. Maximum temperature was 51 degrees on the 21st and a minimum temperature of 9 degrees was recorded on the 23rd. Daytime high temperatures averaged 38.1 degrees, 0.4 degrees below the norm. Evening temperatures averaged 21.9 degrees, 2.4 degrees above norm. There were eight days with temperatures above 40 degrees. Every day in January reached temperatures below 32 degrees during the overnight hours.

Precipitation totaled 2.37 inches. This is 1.93 inches below normal. We had measurable precipitation on 11 days. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 0.75 inches on the 19th. There were three days with snowfall totaling 6.0 inches of snow, 0.5 inches one on the 9th, 0.5 inches on the 10th and 5.0 inches on the 21st.

Sunshine totaled 51% of the possible sunshine hours, 5 points over the norm and the same as January 2000.

February
February was dry & mild with higher than average sunshine. The month had above average snowfall. The temperatures averaged 31.4 degrees, 2.3 degree per day above normal. Maximum temperature was 53 degrees on the 10th and a minimum temperature of 10 degrees was recorded on the 12th. Daytime high temperatures averaged 40.3 degrees, 1.6 degrees above the norm. Evening temperatures averaged 22.6 degrees, 3.2 degrees above the norm. All but one night in February reached temperatures below 32 degrees during the overnight hours.

Precipitation totaled 2.62 inches. This is 0.92 inches below normal. We had measurable precipitation on 6 days. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 1.01 inches on the 26th . There were four days with snowfall totaling 8.6 inches of snow, 1.4 inches above normal. The greatest snowfall came on the 23rd with 5.0 inches.

Sunshine totaled 57% of the possible sunshine hours, 7 points over the norm.

The official winter in Boston (Dec. - Feb) 2000-2001 averaged 30.3 degrees, 0.5 degrees below normal. This is 2.7 degrees colder than last winter. The coldest temperature recorded was 8 degrees on Dec. 26th . The coldest daily high was 22 degrees, occurring on Dec. 8th. This is the earliest date for the winter lowest maximum since December 1936. Boston's winter was also on the dry side, starting with a wet December followed by two dry months. Snowfall was 4.7 inches below average.

March
March was extremely wet with very little sunshine. The month also had above average snowfall. There were three northeasters (5th -7th, 9th - 10th and 21st- 23rd ). The temperatures averaged 36.2 degrees, 0.1 degree per day above normal. Maximum temperature was 54 degrees on the 24th and a minimum temperature of 20 degrees was recorded on the 1st and 2nd . Daytime high temperatures averaged 42.9 degrees, 2.1 degrees below the norm. Evening temperatures averaged 29.4 degrees, 2.2 degrees above the norm. The first two weeks of March were very cold and wet. The third week of March was the only sunny week with average temperatures. The last week of March again had below average temperatures and above average rainfall.

Precipitation totaled 13.85 inches for the month of March. This is 9.05 inches above normal. This is an all-time record rainfall in East Wareham during the last 75 years, surpassing the March 1968 record rainfall of 10.35 inches. It is also the third highest rainfall measured for any month in the past 75 years. This year's record was surpassed only by September 1972 (14.56 inches) and September 1996 (14.77 inches). We had measurable precipitation on 14 days. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 5.17 inches on the 30th - 31st. We also had heavy rainfall (4.15 inches) on March 21st - 22nd. There were five days with a total of 11.0 inches of snow, 4.4 inches above normal. The greatest snowfall came on the 27th with 6.0 inches.

Sunshine totaled 38% of the possible sunshine hours, 10 points under the norm. This put our total sunshine hours for the year so far at 7 hours below average.

PRELIMINARY KEEPING QUALITY FORECAST

As of April 1, there are 0 points out of a possible 10 that favor keeping quality for the 2001 Massachusetts cranberry crop. The forecast is for a VERY POOR keeping quality. The final keeping quality forecast (issued after June 1) could be upgraded if we have a cool and dry April and May. Based on this present forecast, this would be a particularly good year to hold late water. Unless the forecast improves in June, we do NOT recommend cutting corners on fungicide applications or rates for fruit rot management, particularly in a bed that has a history of higher fruit rot incidence.

April
April ended extremely dry with average sunshine. The temperatures averaged 45.7 degrees, which is the norm. Maximum temperature was 73 degrees on the 30th and a minimum temperature of 27 degrees was recorded on the 4th and 5th . Daytime high temperatures averaged 54.3 degrees, 0.8 degrees below the norm. Evening temperatures averaged 37.2 degrees, 0.9 degrees above the norm.

Precipitation totaled 2.68 inches for the month of April. This is 1.60 inches below normal. We had measurable precipitation on 7 days. The last measurable rain fall came on the 18th, with only a trace in the last two weeks of the month. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 0.94 inches on the 12th.

The low rainfall in April did help the keeping quality, giving us 1 point, but no points for temperatures.

May
May was dry, warm and sunny. The first three weeks were extremely dry and warm. This followed the dry spell at the end of April. The temperatures averaged 57.6 degrees, which is 1.7 degrees above normal. Maximum temperature was 86 degrees on the 4th and a minimum temperature of 32 degrees was recorded on the 7th . Daytime high temperatures averaged 66.9 degrees, 1.0 degrees above the norm. Evening temperatures averaged 48.2 degrees, 2.4 degrees above the norm. For the first five months of 2001, the temperature has averaged 40.2 degrees, 1.1 degrees above normal.

Precipitation totaled 4.12 inches for the month of May. This is 0.67 inches above normal. We had measurable precipitation on eight days. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 2.20 inches on the 24th-25th . The first 21 days were extremely dry with only 0.06 inches of rain recorded on the 16th May 22-29 was a 8-day stretch with daily rainfall. From the last rainfall in April (April 18th) until the rain on May 22nd , we went 33 days with no significant rain. This is the earliest recorded long stretch of dry weather for East Wareham. Year-to-date, we have recorded 25.64 inches of rainfall, which is 5.27 inches above normal. Sunshine totaled 54% of the possible sunshine hours, 2 points above the norm. The warm temperatures and total rain for the month factored against a good Keeping Quality forecast.

June
June was wet, warm, and sunny. The temperatures averaged 68.8 degrees, which is 4.1 degrees above normal. This was the third warmest June in our 75 years of record keeping, surpassed only by 1957 (69.1) and 1998 (71.5). Maximum temperature was 89 degrees on the 27th and a minimum temperature of 43 degrees was recorded on the 1st. Daytime high temperatures averaged 77.2 degrees, 2.9 degrees above the norm. Evening temperatures averaged 60.4 degrees, 5.4 degrees above the norm.

Precipitation totaled 5.63 inches for the month of June. This is 2.37 inches above normal. We had measurable precipitation on five days. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 1.92 inches on the 2nd . Precipitation fell evenly over the month, giving us an average of 1.5 inches of rain every week to 10 days. Year-to-date, we have recorded 31.27 inches of rainfall, which is 7.64 inches above normal and 2.14 inches more than June of 2000. Sunshine totaled 60% of the possible sunshine hours, 5 points above the norm.

July
July was very cool and sunny. The temperatures averaged 68.0 degrees, which is 3.0 degrees below normal. Maximum temperature was 92 degrees on the 25th. This was the first 90-degree day recorded in East Wareham since August 1, 1999. A minimum temperature of 51 degrees was recorded on the 3rd and 28th. Daytime high temperatures averaged 76.5 degrees, 4.3 degrees below the norm. Evening temperatures averaged 59.6 degrees, 1.6 degrees below the norm. Precipitation totaled 3.84 inches for the month of July, this is 2.37 inches above normal. This gives a year-to-date total rainfall of 35.11 inches, 8.60 inches above average. We had measurable precipitation on ten days, double the average for July. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 2.15 inches on the 26th . Precipitation was scattered and light over the month, except for the heavy rain on the 26th . Sunshine totaled 71% of the possible sunshine hours, 14 points above the norm.

August
August was warm with average rainfall. The temperatures averaged 72.4 degrees, which is 2.6 degrees below normal and 2.4 degrees warmer than July. Maximum temperature was 93 degrees on the 7th. A minimum temperature of 53 degrees was recorded on the 26th. Daytime high temperatures averaged 79.4 degrees, 0.2 degrees below the norm. Evening temperatures were well above normal, averaging 65.5 degrees, 5.6 degrees above the norm. Precipitation totaled 4.19 inches for the month of August; this is 0.10 inches below normal. This gives a year-to-date total rainfall of 39.30 inches, 8.50 inches above average. We had measurable precipitation on nine days. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 1.59 inches on the 4th and 5th. Precipitation was evenly spaced over the first three weeks, with a dry spell during the last 10 days, which continued into September. Sunshine totaled 64% of the possible sunshine hours, 7 points above the norm, recorded at the Blue Hill Observatory.

September
September was warm with average rainfall. The temperatures averaged 65.0 degrees, which is 2.2 degrees above normal. Maximum temperature was 80 degrees on the 8th, 9th, and 10th. A minimum temperature of 42 degrees was recorded on the 16th. Daytime high temperatures averaged 74.5 degrees, 1.8 degrees above the norm. Evening temperatures were well above normal, averaging 55.5 degrees, 2.6 degrees above the norm. Precipitation totaled 3.79 inches for the month of September; this is 0.05 inches below normal. This gives a year-to-date total rainfall of 43.09 inches, 8.45 inches above average. We had measurable precipitation on five days. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 3.47 inches on the 21st and 22nd. The first half of the month was very dry; this followed the last 10 days of August with no rainfall. The last half of September was mostly cloudy and rainy.

HARVEST
The 2001 harvest season is in full swing. Dry and wet harvesting is going on in all areas. Some grower picked white berries in early to mid September. These are for the new Ocean Spray product, White Cranberry Juice. There have been no reports on color or quality at this time.

October
October was a very dry and warm month. Temperatures averaged 54.2 degrees for the month, 1.3 degrees above normal. Daytime temperatures averaged 63.4 degrees, just 0.2 degrees above normal. The evening temperatures averaged 44.9 degrees, 2.3 degrees above normal. A maximum temperature of 74 degrees was recorded on the 2nd and 4th and a minimum temperature of 28 degrees was recorded on the 29th. This was the warmest October since 1995. Precipitation totaled 1.00 inch, which was 2.5 inches below normal for the month. We have had 44.09 inches of rain to date for the year 2001, which is 6.01 inches above normal. We had measurable rain (0.10 inches or above) on 2 days and 4 days with a trace to 0.10 inches. The greatest 24-hour rainfall was 0.56 inches, which came on the 24th. During the period of September 23rd thru October 16th (24 days), we only had 0.31 inches of rain. This is the driest October since 1950, and the 3rd driest in the 75 years of record keeping in East Wareham, surpassed only by 1950 (0.98 inches) and 1949 (0.84 inches). All four weekends were dry and with lots of sunshine and great fall colors, though we did experience heavy fog on 4 mornings and 2 full days with foggy conditions. Sunshine totaled 67% of the possible sunshine hours (12 points more the average) making this the sunniest October since 1974. We had 23 days with some sunshine and 14 of those days had 90% or better of possible sunshine.

HARVEST
Harvesting was in full swing during the month of October. Some growers found their yields to be much lower than expected. Even though the color of the fruit this year was excellent, the quality of some of the fruit was poor as growers found a lot of fruit rot in their loads of cranberries. The harvest season went very smoothly due to the nice weather.

November
November was a very dry and warm month. Temperatures averaged 47.5 degrees for the month, 4.3 degrees above normal. This is the 2nd warmest November recorded in the 76 years of record keeping in East Wareham. Surpassed only by November 1998, when temperatures averaged 51.0 degrees. Daytime temperatures averaged 56.7 degrees, 3.7 degrees above normal. The evening temperatures averaged 38.3 degrees, 4.9 degrees above normal. A maximum temperature of 70.0 degrees was recorded on the 16th and a minimum temperature of 20.0 degrees was recorded on the 13th.

This was the driest November on record in East Wareham. Precipitation totaled 0.65 inch, which was 3.95 inches below normal for the month. Passing the record of 1931 with 0.78 inches of rainfall. This makes two consecutive months with very low rainfall. Due to the very wet March and the above average rainfall during the summer, we are 2.06 inches above normal for the year-to-date rainfall. We have had 44.74 inches of rain to date for the year 2001. We had measurable rain (0.10 inches or above) on 3 days and 4 days with a trace to 0.10 inches. The greatest 24-hour rainfall was 0.33 inches, which came on the 5th. The first six days of November were overcast and damp, and the next twenty days were sunny and dry, ending the month with heavy fog on 3 mornings and 2 full days with foggy conditions.

Sunshine totaled 55% of the possible sunshine hours (8 points more the average). November is known to be a very cloudy month. This year, we only had 6 days with no sunshine during November.

December
December was very mild, dry and quite sunny. The temperature averaged 40.1 degrees, 8.1 degrees above normal. This set a new record for December, surpassing the 1996 record average temperature of 39.9 degrees. Maximum temperature was 66 degrees on the 6th and a minimum temperature of 19 degrees was recorded on the 23rd. The record high in East Wareham for December was set in 1998 at 70 degrees. Precipitation totaled 3.52 inches. This is 0.68 inches below normal. We had 14 days of measurable rain. There was only one day with snow showers, which totaled 0.20 inches of snow, on the 26th. The largest 24-hour rainfall was 1.02 inches on the 18th. Sunshine totaled 50% of the possible sunshine hours, 4 points over the norm of 46%. There were 7 days with practically full sun.

Year-End Summary
Overall, the year 2001 was warm and sunny with above average rainfall. It was the seventh warmest year on record at the Cranberry Station in East Wareham in the past 75 years, averaging 51.4 degrees, which is 2.1 degrees above the 30-year average. The average monthly temperature was equal to or above normal for nine out of the 12 months for this year. The maximum temperature for the year was 93 degrees on August 7th and the minimum temperature was 9 degrees on January 23rd. We had a very wet spring and a very dry fall. The summer of 2001 was below average in temperature with average rainfall and lots of sunshine. The winter of 2000 and 2001 provided 27.6 inches of snow.

By year's end, precipitation totaled 48.26 inches, 1.38 inches above normal (the year of 1972 holds the all-time maximum rainfall record with 73.94 inches). The rainfall in 2001 fell (sometimes intensely) for short timeframes during certain times of the year. The heaviest 24-hour rainfall in 2001 was 5.17 inches during March 30th - 31st. March became the wettest month when three northeasters deposited 13.85 inches of rainfall. This set an all-time record for the month of March and the 3rd highest rainfall for any given month in the 75 years of records here in East Wareham. Despite this record rainfall in the early part of the year, 2001 had eight months of below average rainfall. In fact, November 2001 broke the 1931 record of 0.78 inches of rainfall for the driest November with only 0.65 inches rainfall. We also experienced a 24-day drought in September and October that brought only 0.31 inches of rainfall. From September 22 - Dec 9th (77 days), only 1.93 inches of rainfall was recorded, a 6+ inch deficit. To further exacerbate the situation, we are going into the winter season of 2001 - 2002 with a 5-inch deficit in snowfall.

Sunshine hours for the year were above average (+222 hours). There were two months with low sunshine hours and ten months with above sunshine hours. March and September were the two months with low sunshine hours.